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Trinity–Antonian Cricket Encounter

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For other uses, see Battle of the Blues.
Not to be confused with Battle of the Blues (Colombo).
Battle of the Blues (Kandy)
John Halangoda Memorial Trophy
Trinity College
St. Anthony's College
SportCricket
First meeting1914; 110 years ago (1914)
St. Anthony's won by 42 runs
Latest meeting2024
Match drawn
Next meeting2025
StadiumsAsgiriya Stadium
St. Anthony's College Cricket Stadium
TrophyJohn Halangoda Memorial Trophy
Statistics
Meetings total105
All-time seriesTrinity leads, 23–11–71
Longest win streakTrinity, 11 (1918–1928)
Map
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Location Map
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Trinity College
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Asgiriya Stadium
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St. Anthony's College
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St. Anthony's College Cricket Stadium

The Battle of the Blues (Kandy), also referred to as the Trinity–Antonian Cricket Encounter or Hill Country Battle of the Blues, stands as the sixth oldest traditional school cricket match, commonly known as a Big Match, held annually in Sri Lanka. Dating back to 1914, this encounter sees Trinity College, Kandy, and St. Anthony's College, Kandy, engage in a two-day cricket contest. The John Halangoda Memorial Trophy is bestowed upon the victor of the match, determined by either an outright win or, failing that, a first innings triumph. It is noteworthy that a first innings victory does not formally register as a win for the respective team in the records.[1]

Furthermore, following the conclusion of the two-day match, a limited overs encounter is typically held a week later. This series was inaugurated in 1980, and the winning team is awarded the Sir Richard Aluwihare Trophy.[2]

History

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Both Trinity and St. Anthony’s College embraced cricket as a sporting pursuit during the late 19th century, inaugurating their respective 1st XI programmes soon after. The initial cricket fixtures between the two institutions featured teams consisting of both staff and students. However, these early encounters are not recognised as official 1st XI inter-school matches and are consequently excluded from the schools' overall records.

The first official 1st XI cricket match between the schools was played in March 1914 at the Bogambara Stadium in Kandy with St. Anthony’s emerging victorious by 42 runs. C. E. de Silva captained Trinity with C. C. Senaratne captaining St. Anthony’s. Trinity won the encounter in 1915 but due to exigencies created from the ongoing World War I, the series was suspended in 1916.

It recommenced in 1917, which was won by St. Anthony’s. Trinity went on to record 11 consecutive victories from 1918 to 1928. During the period following the culmination of World War I, St. Anthony’s were deprived of their cricket ground and practice pitches due to the British Army occupying the land.[3]

A disagreement between the two schools, regarding the age rule resulted in the cancellation of the encounter in 1956 and 1957.[4]

In 2001, the encounter was not contested as Trinity terminated their season early due to disciplinary reasons.

The centenary encounter of the series was held in 2017 with the two schools taking on each other on 10-11 March 2017 at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele.[5]

The matches were postponed and eventually called off in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]

The trophy

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In 2005, a tribute was established in memory of John Halangoda, an alumnus of Trinity College who later served as a cricket coach at St. Anthony’s. This commemorative trophy, known as the John Halangoda Memorial Trophy, was introduced to honour his legacy. It is awarded to the victorious team at the conclusion of the two-day match.

The victors of the limited overs cricket contest are honoured with the Sir Richard Aluwihare Memorial Trophy. This award pays homage to the distinguished legacy of Sir Richard Aluwihare, the first Ceylonese Inspector General of Police and a veteran of World War I. Sir Richard Aluwihare, an alumnus of Trinity College, excelled not only as a cricket stalwart but also as the head prefect during his time at the institution.[7]

Sir Richard Aluwihare Memorial Trophy

The venue

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The two-day encounter is alternatively held at Asgiriya Stadium, which is the home ground of Trinity and St. Anthony’s College Cricket Stadium, which is the home ground of St. Anthony’s. Bogambara Stadium and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium also had been match venues in the past.

The same principle applies to the limited overs series as well, with the visiting team at a particular year's two-day encounter assuming the role of the host for the subsequent limited overs engagement.

Statistics and results

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Statistics

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As of 23 March 2024

Results of the last encounter

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  • 105th two-day encounter was drawn.[8][9]
  • 42nd limited overs encounter was won by Trinity by a margin of 100-runs.[10][11]
As of 23 March 2024

List of fixtures and results

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Note

Two-day series: 1914–1979

[edit]
As of 23 March 2024
Year Series Venue Captains Result
Trinity St. Anthony's
1914 1 Bogambara C. E. de Silva C. C. Senaratne St. Anthony’s
1915 2 Asgiriya R. Ondatje Trinity
1916 Not played
1917 3 Bogambara A. Aluwihare J. M. Ferguson St. Anthony’s (2)
1918 4 Asgiriya A. H. R. Joseph Trinity (2)
1919 5 Bogambara J. Bandaranayake Trinity (3)
1920 6 Asgiriya P. Maralande Trinity (4)
1921 7 Bogambara P. Maralande Trinity (5)
1922 8 Asgiriya P. Maralande Trinity (6)
1923 9 Bogambara V. C. Shockman Trinity (7)
1924 10 Asgiriya V. C. Shockman Trinity (8)
1925 11 Bogambara H. Delwita Trinity (9)
1926 12 Asgiriya H. Delwita Trinity (10)
1927 13 Bogambara H. Shockman Trinity (11)
1928 14 Asgiriya J. W. Aiyadurai Trinity (12)
1929 15 Bogambara J. W. Aiyadurai St. Anthony’s (3)
1930 16 Asgiriya S. Odayar Trinity (13)
1931 17 Bogambara S. B. de Saram Trinity (14)
1932 18 Asgiriya E. W. A. Buultjens Draw
1933 19 Bogambara E. W. A. Buultjens Trinity (15)
1934 20 Asgiriya B. A. Wijewardena Draw (2)
1935 21 Bogambara W. Winter Draw (3)
1936 22 Asgiriya R. Breckenridge Draw (4)
1937 23 Asgiriya O. L. Izadeen Draw (5)
1938 24 Katugastota T. B. Marambe Trinity (16)
1939 25 Asgiriya G. P. Schoorman Trinity (17)
1940 26 Katugastota R. P. de Alwis Draw (6)
1941 27 Asgiriya H. E. W. Solomons Draw (7)
1942 28 Katugastota S. B. Dissanayke Draw (8)
1943 29 Asgiriya T. B. Werapitiya Draw (9)
1944 30 Katugastota T. B. Werapitiya Trinity (18)
1945 31 Asgiriya A. P. Fernando Trinity (19)
1946 32 Katugastota C. N. Shockman Draw (10)
1947 33 Asgiriya C. N. Shockman Trinity (20)
1948 34 Katugastota L. V. Wadsworth St. Anthony’s (4)
1949 35 Asgiriya L. V. Wadsworth Draw (11)
1950 36 Katugastota L. Kadirgamar S. Jayasinghe Draw (12)
1951 37 Asgiriya E. Rulach B. Weerakoon Trinity (21)
1952 38 Katugastota G. Tennekoon B. Weerakoon Draw (13)
1953 39 Asgiriya A. H. Bandaranayake E. Cooray Draw (14)
1954 40 Katugastota A. Hulangamuwa A. C. M. Lafir St. Anthony’s (5)
1955 41 Asgiriya H. F. Ratwatte A. C. M. Lafir Draw (15)
1956 Not played
1957 Not played
1958 42 Katugastota A. N. Maralande S. W. Seneviratne Draw (16)
1959 43 Asgiriya A. N. Maralande C. Joseph Draw (17)
1960 44 Katugastota J. S. Ratwatte C. Joseph Draw (18)
1961 45 Asgiriya S. A. Silva H. M. Muthalib Draw (19)
1962 46 Katugastota V. I. Kodituwakku N. Dunuwille St. Anthony’s (6)
1963 47 Asgiriya S. M. Perera M. Joseph Draw (20)
1964 48 Katugastota M. T. M. Zaruk Draw (21)
1965 49 Asgiriya M. T. M. Zaruk Draw (22)
1966 50 Katugastota H. Dunuwille N. Nagendra Draw (23)
1967 51 Asgiriya H. S. Ranaweera Draw (24)
1968 52 Katugastota C. M. Amunugama R. Sims St. Anthony’s (7)
1969 53 Asgiriya C. N. Dissanayake C. Sims Draw (25)
1970 54 Katugastota N. R. Marambe M. Gunaratne Draw (26)
1971 55 Asgiriya J. L. Weerasinghe R. Sims Draw (27)
1972 56 Katugastota A. E. Unantenne J. Monnekulame St. Anthony’s (8)
1973 57 Asgiriya R. S. Dissanayke P. de Silva Draw (28)
1974 58 Katugastota A. R. Perera Draw (29)
1975 59 Asgiriya A. R. Perera Draw (30)
1976 60 Katugastota J. D. D. Weerasinghe Draw (31)
1977 61 Asgiriya F. R. R. Arthur Draw (32)
1978 62 Katugastota A. R. Tissera R. De La Motte Draw (33)
1979 63 Asgiriya P. S. Dinesh M. Ratnakumar Draw (34)

Two-day and limited overs series: 1980–2024

[edit]
As of 23 March 2024
Two-day series Limited overs series
Year Series Venue Captains Result Series Venue Result
Trinity St. Anthony's
1980 64 Katugastota J. R. Ratnayake A. Leanage Draw (35) 1 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s
1981 65 Asgiriya S. T. B. Ellepola F. Majeed St. Anthony’s (9) 2 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (2)
1982 66 Katugastota A. D. P. Yainne A. Dunuwille Draw (36) 3 Asgiriya Trinity
1983 67 Asgiriya J. S. Mutthumani M. Von Hagt Draw (37) 4 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (3)
1984 68 Katugastota H. C. D. D’ Silva M. Von Hagt Draw (38) 5 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (4)
1985 69 Asgiriya A. U. Aturaliye A. Wickramasuriya Draw (39) 6 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (5)
1986 70 Katugastota T. P. Weerasooriya R. Perera Trinity (22) 7 Asgiriya Trinity (2)
1987 71 Asgiriya D. R. Madena D. Nadarajah Draw (40) 8 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (6)
1988 72 Katugastota C. I. Fernando R. Kalpage Draw (44) 9 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (7)
1989 73 Asgiriya D. K. Ratwatte S. de Alwis Draw (42) 10 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (8)
1990 74 Katugastota S. Jayasinghe S. de Alwis St. Anthony’s (10) 11 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (9)
1991 75 Asgiriya Y. S. Goonatilleke N. Kalpage Draw (43) 12 Katugastota Trinity (3)
1992 76 Katugastota K. C. Edirisinghe U. de Alwis St. Anthony’s (11) 13 Asgiriya Trinity (4)
1993 77 Asgiriya H. M. Goonetileke Draw (44) 14 Katugastota No result
1994 78 Katugastota T. H. de Silva Draw (45) 15 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (10)
1995 79 Asgiriya S. N. Fernando Draw (46) 16 Katugastota Trinity (5)
1996 80 Katugastota J. L. B. Seneviratne Draw (47) 17 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (11)
1997 81 Asgiriya C. K. Sangakkara T. Gunaratne Draw (48) 18 Katugastota Trinity (6)
1998 82 Katugastota S. P. Fernando M. Palihakkara Draw (49) 19 Asgiriya Trinity (7)
1999 83 Asgiriya U. K. Weeraratne S. Pinnaduwa Draw (50) 20 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (12)
2000 84 Katugastota U. K. Weeraratne N. M. Nizam Draw (51) 21 Asgiriya Trinity (8)
2001 Not played
2002 85 Asgiriya K. L. R. Gamage P. Ranawaka Draw (52) 22 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (13)
2003 86 Katugastota C. M. Fernando N. Ratnayake Draw (53) 23 Asgiriya No result (2)
2004 87 Asgiriya C. M. Fernando M. Rizlan Draw (54) 24 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (14)
2005 88 Katugastota R. M. Munaweera P. Fernando Draw (55) 25 Asgiriya St. Anthony’s (15)
2006 89 Asgiriya C. S. Dumbarage S. Munas Draw (56) 26 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (16)
2007 90 Katugastota S. S. Pathirana S. Jamian Draw (57) 27 Asgiriya Trinity (9)
2008 91 Asgiriya D. C. Gangoda K. Dissanayake Draw (58) 28 Katugastota No result (3)
2009 92 Katugastota M. R. Jaleel S. Palihakkara Draw (59) 29 Asgiriya Trinity (10)
2010 93 Asgiriya M. H. M. Sajid D. Kumarasinghe Draw (60) 30 Katugastota Trinity (11)
2011 94 Katugastota A. Jayasundara H. Wickramasekara Draw (61) 31 Asgiriya Trinity (12)
2012 95 Asgiriya D. P. N. Dickwella K. Ranaraja Trinity (23) 32 Katugastota St. Anthony’s (17)
2013 96 Katugastota D. M. Wickramanayake S. Bulathsinghala Draw (62) 33 Asgiriya Trinity (13)
2014 97 Asgiriya K. R. Chandraguptha N. Gunasinghe Draw (63) 34 Katugastota Tied
2015 98 Katugastota R. S. Sayer B. Wijethunga Draw (64) 35 Asgiriya Trinity (14)
2016 99 Pallekele R. S. Sayer K. Ukgalpaya Draw (65) 36 Katugastota Trinity (15)
2017 100 Pallekele S. Shanmuganathan M. Alfar Draw (66) 37 Asgiriya Trinity (16)
2018 101 Asgiriya E. M. H. R. B. Boyagoda J. Himsara Draw (67) 38 Katugastota Trinity (17)
2019 102 Katugastota G. G. P. Bandara T. Gunasinghe Draw (68) 39 Asgiriya Trinity (18)
2020 Not played due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021 Not played due to COVID-19 pandemic
2022 103 Asgiriya A. Muthalib C. Wickremasinghe Draw (69) 40 Asgiriya Trinity (19)
2023 104 Katugastota R. Amarasinghe L. Abeysinghe Draw (70) 41 Asgiriya No result (4)
2024 105 Asgiriya M. Kularathne T. Ekanayake Draw (71) 42 Katugastota Trinity (20)

Match and series records for the two-day series

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Best performances

[edit]
As of 23 March 2024
Largest margin of victory by runs Trinity Won by an innings and 120 runs (1939)
St. Anthony’s Won by an innings and 90 runs (1962)
Largest margin of victory by wickets Trinity Won by 9 wickets (1927 and 1951)
St. Anthony’s Won by 9 wickets (1992)
Smallest margin of victory by runs Trinity Won by 41 runs (1925)
St. Anthony’s Won by 42 runs (1914)
Smallest margin of victory by wickets Trinity Won by 4 wickets (1931)
St. Anthony’s Won by 6 wickets (1917 and 1981)
Highest innings total Trinity 406/8d (1942)
St. Anthony’s 399/8d (1954)
Lowest innings total Trinity 54 (1990)
St. Anthony’s 27 (1928)
Most runs in an innings Trinity 148 by K. Weeraratne (1999)
St. Anthony’s 176 by A. C. M. Lafir (1954)
Best bowling figures in an innings Trinity 10/38 by S. Fernando (1997) [a]
St. Anthony’s 7/26 by P. Wijetunge (1990)
Best bowling figures in a match Trinity 12/48 by C. Dharmalingam (1939) – 6/17 and 6/13 [b]
St. Anthony’s 12/81 by S. Fernando (1992) – 6/39 and 6/52

Batting and bowling records

[edit]
As of 23 March 2024

Records for the limited overs series

[edit]

Best performances

[edit]
As of 23 March 2024
Largest margin of victory by runs Trinity Won by 149 runs (2018)
St. Anthony’s Won by 160 runs (1983)
Largest margin of victory by wickets Trinity Won by 9 wickets (2016)
St. Anthony’s Won by 9 wickets (1990)
Smallest margin of victory by runs Trinity Won by 2 runs (2011)
St. Anthony’s Won by 10 runs (2012)
Smallest margin of victory by wickets Trinity Won by 1 wicket (1991)
St. Anthony’s Won by 1 wicket (1989)
Highest innings total Trinity 305/7 in 50 overs (2000)
St. Anthony’s 276/5 in 45 overs (1993) and 276/8 in 50 overs (1980)
Lowest innings total Trinity 71 in 25.5 overs (1983)
St. Anthony’s 89 in 31 overs (2016)
Most runs in an innings Trinity 109 by H. Boyagoda (2018)
St. Anthony’s 139 by M. Von Hagt (1983)
Best bowling figures in an innings Trinity 6/23 by A. Anandakumar (2019)
St. Anthony’s 5/24 by K. Ekanayake (2007)

Batting and bowling records

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As of 23 March 2024

Notable people who have played

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Notes

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  1. ^ Achieved a Ten-wicket haul in St. Anthony's second innings
  2. ^ Achieved a hat-trick in each innings

References

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  1. ^ Laphir, Afzal (20 April 2023). "Trinity–Antonian Encounters – A Statistical Analysis". Quadrangle. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  2. ^ Laphir, Afzal (28 April 2023). "The Trinity–Antonian Limited Overs Series In Numbers". Quadrangle. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  3. ^ Alahakoon, Victor (13 March 1997). "A peep into the past of the Trinity - Antonian series". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  4. ^ Wijesena, Wickrema (3 March 2009). "Trinity-Antonian 'Big Match' 50 years ago". The Island. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  5. ^ Jaleel, Shamseer (10 March 2017). "Trinity-St. Antony's centenary big match could be anyone's game". Daily FT. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  6. ^ Jaleel, Shamseer (4 May 2021). "Up Country Battle of the Blues 103rd Trinity, Antonian battle postponed". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  7. ^ Rajapakse, Lalanthi (29 April 2023). "The coveted Sir Richard Aluvihare Trophy – A walk down memory lane". Trinity College. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  8. ^ Pathiraja, Nimuthu; Senhas, Chaniru; Ananda Kumar, Rehan (27 April 2023). "In Retrospect of the Hill Country Battle of the Blues Trophy". Trinity College. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  9. ^ Marikar, Hafiz (17 March 2024). "Drab draw at Trinity-Anthonian". Sunday Observer. Archived from the original on 30 March 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Trinity secure comfortable 100-run victory". The Sunday Times. 24 March 2024. Archived from the original on 24 March 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  11. ^ Dhananjan, Kevin (24 March 2024). "Trinity's Triumph: Grasping the Richard Aluvihare Trophy for the 20th time". ThePapare. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
[edit]
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